
Saturday, October 22, 2022



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Team Information
Divisions & Entry Fees
Teams may enter one of the following divisions in either, or both, the Red and Vegetarian Red categories.
Amateur – $75 Professional – $75
Amateur – The talented home cook.
Professional – The chef who gets paid to prepare food for others (including restaurants, camps, universities, corporate kitchens, etc.).
Each team receives:
- Two All-Day Rides Wristbands
- Two event T-shirts
- One complimentary Parking Pass
Public Tasting
- Spectators may purchase a tasting kit ($12) containing bowl, spoon, six taste tickets, and a People’s Choice Ballot.
- Kits will be available to purchase at 10am. Public tasting begins at 1pm.
- A spectator must present a taste ticket to receive a two (2) ounce taste of your chili
- Taste Tickets are required even after ticket buckets are turned in. NO CHILI GIVEAWAYS!
Cook-Off Schedule
- 7am-8:30am- Check in and set up cooking areas. NO EARLY CHECK IN.
- 8:45am-9am- Mandatory meeting for cooks at Colonnade Stage (near Pirate Ship)
- 9am-10am- Preparation period (No heat- 1 hour)
- 9am-10am- Santa Cruz Fire Department booth inspections. (Must have type 2A10BC fire extinguisher, secured propane tank with no leaks, and no other fire hazards.)
- 10am-1pm- Cooking period (3 hours)
- 12pm-1pm- Judging times and cups delivered to teams
- 1pm- Public tasting begins
- 1:30pm- Judging begins – teams deliver chili to Judging Area at scheduled times
- 2:45pm-3pm- Cook-Off representative collects a second judging sample from Red Con Carne Chili finalists
- 3:15pm- Teams deliver their People’s Choice and Taste Ticket boxes to Judging Area
- 4pm- Winners announced at Colonnade Stage (beachside of Neptune’s Kingdom)
Competition/Cooking Rules
Chili Definitions:
- Red Chili is defined as a spicy stew containing any combination of spices and ingredients, cooked with MEAT and having a red hue (may have beans and/or pasta.)
- Red Vegetarian Chili is defined as a spicy stew containing any combination of spices and ingredients -EXCEPT meat- cooked to a red hue (may have beans and/or pasta.)
- International Chili Society cook-off rules DO NOT apply.
Minimum Chili Amounts:
- Amateur teams are required to cook a minimum of three (3) gallons.
- Professional teams are required to cook a minimum of seven (7) gallons.
- Teams may prepare as many gallons as they wish.
The more chili you make, the better your chance to win! - Teams not preparing the minimum amounts will be disqualified from the competition.
Cooking Times:
- There shall be a one-hour preparation period and a three-hour cooking period.
See above schedule for times.
Ingredients:
- No ingredients may be pre-treated in any way prior to the preparation period – the only exceptions are canned goods, grinding and/or mixing of spices, pre-soaked beans, and pre-cut or ground meat. All other ingredients shall be chopped or prepared during the preparation period.
- NOTHING MAY BE PRE-COOKED. (This includes smoked meat.)
Contestants Must Supply:
- All their ingredients and utensils (one ladle will be provided)
- Contestants are allowed (but not required) to give away bread, crackers, corn chips, and/or other toppings to spectators. NO BREADÂ BOWLS.
- For everyone’s safety, NO GLASS CONTAINERS are permitted on the Boardwalk.
- Coleman-type stove (non-liquid fuel ONLY). Please pre-test all stove gas hose lines before the event. Using soapy water to locate leaks in the hose or fittings is recommended. Leaking propane systems cannot be used for cooking.
- If you intend to use a table-top butane stove, you must supply a non-flammable tile-type surface to place on top of the table.
- Propane tanks must be no bigger than 5 gallons/20lbs (typical BBQ size) and must be secured. You may have one extra tank for back up.
- There is NO ELECTRICITY available. Gasoline is prohibited.
- ABC type fire extinguisher. (MUST be a minimum of 2A10-BC, bigger will be accepted.) This identification can be found on the label. All fire extinguishers are to be certified.
- A 10×10 covering/canopy if desired
- Decorations for your booth and cooking area are encouraged. An award for Best Theme will be given based on booth theme and décor.
- Decorations may NOT be attached to Boardwalk walls, rides, or other structures. No helium cylinders allowed.
- All team members, decorations, and cooking assistants must be INSIDE the designated booth space.
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Will Supply (on event day):
- One (1) 6 ft. table and 10×10 cooking area. All booths should not exceed 10×10 or 8′ in height.
- One 2oz serving ladle
- Two trash bags- Teams are responsible for cleaning up their cooking areas
- One Parking Pass
- Two All-Day Rides Tickets for the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
- Two complimentary event T‑shirts
- People’s Choice Ballot Box
- Taste Ticket Box
Judging
Best Chili
- Chili tastings are blind and are judged on a point basis for 1) flavor, 2) color, 3) consistency.
- Judges will give greater consideration to traditional recipes.
- A judging time and 16oz judging cup will be delivered to each team between noon and 1pm.
- It will be the team’s responsibility to fill the judging cup and deliver the chili to the judging area at the allotted judging time.
- At approximately 2:45-3pm, Red Chili team finalists will be asked for another 16oz sample for the judges.
People’s Choice
- The People’s Choice award is determined by ballot. Ballots are included in each tasting kit and may be cast by the tasting public at each booth.
-  It will be the responsibility of the team to deliver their People’s Choice ballot box to the judging area at 3:15pm.
Most Tasted
- The Most Tasted awards are determined by the total number of taste tickets collected by each team.
- It will be the responsibility of the team to deliver their Taste Ticket box to the judging area at 3:15pm.
Best Theme
- The Best Theme award will be determined by our chili judges based on originality of costume and booth decorations.
- Chili judges will judge all booths between 12:30pm-1:30pm
Awards
Plaques will be awarded to winners in each of the following categories:
Best Chili Winners
(1st place winners will be put into a drawing for an additional $500)
- Best Amateur Red – 1st ($150), 2nd, 3rd
- Best Amateur Vegetarian Red – 1st ($150), 2nd, 3rd
- Best Professional Red – 1st ($150), 2nd, 3rd
- Best Professional Vegetarian Red – 1st ($150), 2nd, 3rd
People’s Choice Winners
- People’s Choice Amateur – 1st ($250)
- People’s Choice Professional – 1st ($250)
“Most Tasted” and “Best Theme” Winners
- Most Tasted Amateur – 1st ($250)
- Most Tasted Professional – 1st ($250)
- Best Themed – 1st ($250), 2nd, 3rd
All Teams are eligible for a special prize drawing of $250!
(Head cook must be present at awards ceremony)